Wireless mesh network timed commit provisioning

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems are disclosed for managing a network. The management includes storing configuration parameters in cells within the network, sending a commit command and a commit delay time to the cells, sensing failed reception of the commit command, and aborting the commit command if a failure is sensed.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates generally to communication networks. Moreparticularly, the invention relates to wireless mesh network timedcommit provisioning.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Wireless access devices are becoming more prevalent. Wireless access canbe implemented in many different forms, including connecting a wirelessaccess device (client) through a wireless mesh network that providesconnection to a wired network. FIG. 1 shows a wireless network thatincludes client devices 130, 140. The network provides the clients 130,140 access to the internet 100. For example, a first client device 130is provided access to the internet 100 through a wireless connection toa router 110, and through a wired network 105, and a second client isprovided access to the internet 100 through a wireless connection to arouter 120, and the wired network 105. The wireless connection betweenthe router 110 and the client 130 can be defined by a downlinkconnection 140 (in which data traffic flows from the router 110 to theclient 130), and by an uplink connection 150 (in which data trafficflows from the client 130 to the router 110).

Proper operation of the wireless network requires wireless devices ofthe network (including various forms of routers) to have proper wirelessnetwork configuration parameters. The network configuration parametersinclude, for example, a wireless routing domain (WRD), transmissionrates, encryption information, and available link information.

The required or desired wireless network parameters can change overtime. For example, the encryption, WRD and link information can changeover time, requiring the network configuration parameters to be updatedto reflect the changes.

The update or modification in the configuration parameters can becontrolled by an operator. The operator can modify the configurationparameters based upon metrics of the network that reflect performance ofthe network.

It is desirable to have a method and apparatus for wireless networkingthat provides for proper network configuration parameters, and properupdating of the network configuration parameters.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the invention includes a method of managing a network.The method includes storing configuration parameters in cells within thenetwork, sending a commit command and a commit delay time to the cells,sensing failed reception of the commit command, and aborting the commitcommand if a failure is sensed.

Another embodiment of the invention includes a method of a NetworkManagement System (NMS) managing a wireless mesh network. The methodincludes the NMS storing wireless configuration parameters in cellswithin the wireless mesh network, the NMS sending a commit command and acommit delay time to the cells, the NMS sensing failed reception of thecommit command, and the NMS aborting the commit command if a failure issensed.

Another embodiment of the invention includes a wireless networkmanagement system (NMS). The NMS includes a means for storingconfiguration parameters to gateways and access node within the awireless network, a means for sending a commit command and a commitdelay time to the gateways and access nodes, a means for sensing failedreception of the commit command, and a means for aborting the commitcommand if a failure is sensed.

Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example theprinciples of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows clients connected to a network.

FIG. 2 shows a wireless mesh network and an associated network manager.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing a method of managing a wireless meshnetwork.

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a Network Management System (NMS).

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing another method of managing a wirelessmesh network.

FIG. 6 shows a wireless mesh network, an associated network manager, andchannel assignments within the wireless mesh network.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As shown in the drawings for purposes of illustration, the invention isembodied in methods and apparatus for managing configuration parametersof a network.

FIG. 2 shows a wireless mesh network 200 and an associated networkmanager system (NMS) 210. A client 230 is connected to the internet 100through a wired network 250, a first gateway 260, a first access node272 and a second access node 274. The mesh network 200 additionallyincludes a second gateway 262 and a third access node 276, however, itis to be understood that the mesh network 200 can include any number ofadditional gateways and access nodes. The wired network 250 provides awired connection to the internet 100.

The gateways 260, 262 and access nodes 273, 274, 276 includeconfiguration parameters that determine the operations of the gatewaysand the access nodes. Typically, the NMS 210 determines how and when theconfiguration parameters are updated. The network configurationparameters provide control over the mesh network including channelselections for links within the mesh network, encryption of data of themesh network, and routing control messages.

The client 230 can be any type of computing device, such as, a laptop,personal computer, cell phone or personal digital assistant (PDA). Theclient 230 should be able to communicate over available transmissionchannels of the network 200.

Access nodes are devices having one or more network interfaces, and arecapable of routing data traffic. An access node can provide a clientdevice (such as client 230) with a network connection.

The gateways provide the access nodes with a data path to an upstreamnetwork. As will be described later, an exemplary embodiment of thegateways includes the gateways being an originator of beacons. Thegateway can be wire connected, or wirelessly connected to the network205. The beacons are routing packets that carry information aboutrouting paths. The beacons are transmitted from the gateways forreception by the access nodes. Access nodes that are able to receive thebeacons from a particular gateway can route data to that gateway if theaccess node selects the gateway over other gateways that also transmitbeacons (which can be over the same transmission channel, or a differenttransmission channel). Generally, the access nodes receive routingbeacons, select a routing path, modify the beacons, and retransmit themodified beacons for reception by other downstream devices (downstreamdevices can be other access nodes or clients).

The NMS 210 can be located remotely. The NMS 210 typically provides anetwork operator with the ability to control network, including controlover the network configuration parameters. The NMS 210 can also beconfigured to provide automatic control over at least some of thenetwork configuration parameters. For example, the NMS 210 can provideautomatic control over transmission channel selections of links withinthe network. If a determination is made that a particular transmissionchannel is undesirable due to interference, the transmission channelsthroughout the network can be updated by the NMS 210 by changing thenetwork configuration parameters to reduce the effects of theinterference. The NMS 210 can also provide automatic control overencryption of data of the network, and over the routing controlmessages.

A method for updating the wireless parameters of the mesh networkincludes a two-phase commit method in which present wirelessconfiguration parameters are update with stored wireless configurationparameters. The update occurs when the gateways and access node receivea “commit” command from the NMS.

A two-phase commit protocol is often used in system where transactionsinvolve multiple server applications on multiple computers. In general,the two-phase commit protocol centralizes the decision to commit. In atypical implementation, a commit manager (such as an NMS) hascentralized control of the decision to commit. Other participants in thetransaction, such as gateways and access node of a network associatedwith the NMS, are referred to as subordinate nodes. In a first phase ofthe commit, the commit manager sends network configuration parameters tothe subordinate nodes. In the second phase, the commit manager ordersall of the subordinate nodes to commit network configuration parametersfrom stored memory to active memory.

As shown, each of the gateways 260, 262 and each of the access nodes272, 274, 276 of the mesh network include both stored configurationparameters 282 and present configuration parameters 284. The presentconfiguration parameters 284 are the wireless configuration parametersthat each of the wireless devices is presently using. The storedconfiguration parameters 282 are wireless parameters that are intendedfor future use as determined by the NMS 210 sending a commit command.

The two-phase commit can be problematic, however, if all of the gatewaysand access nodes of the mesh network 200 are not simultaneously updated.For example, it is very possible that one or more of the links of themesh network are not consistent and reliable. That is, the data pathbetween the NMS 210 and an access node, for example, may unreliable,resulting in the access node missing a “commit” command sent by the NMS.If the access node misses the “commit” command, the access node willhave a different set of wireless configuration parameters than the restof the mesh network 200 that was updated. The access node is essentiallyeliminated from the mesh network 200 because the access node can nolonger communicate with the other access nodes and gateways of the meshnetwork 200. Gateways and access nodes that have missed the commit stillhave the old network configuration parameters, and therefore, don't knowthe new transmission channels, the new encryption keys or new routingcontrol messages. Without knowledge of the available transmissionchannels and the encryption key, there is no way for these gateways andaccess nodes to properly communicate with the rest of the network.Clearly, this is an undesirable situation.

Commit Command and Associated Commit Time Delay

To alleviate the problem of some portions (cells that include gatewaysand access nodes) of the network 200 not receiving the commit command, acommit time delay can be sent by the NMS 210 to all cells. The committime delay provides time for the NMS 210 to determine whether any cellsof the network 200 do not receive the new network configurationparameters, or the commit command. If the determination is made thatsome cells did not receive either the new network configurationparameters or the commit command, the NMS 210 transmits (sends) an abortcommand to all of the cells of the network. The abort command preventsthe commit command sent to all of the cells from being executed.Therefore, ideally, all of the cells maintain the same networkconfiguration parameters. That is, the commit command is not executed,and the present (active) network configuration parameters don't change.A form of the abort command includes a reset command. More specifically,aborting includes the NMS sending a reset a command that essentiallyundoes a previously submitted command, such as, a commit command.

The commit time delay should be long enough that the NMS 210 is able todetermine whether the commit command was received by all of the cells,and then successfully abort the commit command to all of the cells ifrequired. The successful reception of the commit command can bedetermined, for example, by the NMS 210 sending a request to all of theaccess nodes and gateways prompting a response to determine whether thecommit command was received. More specifically, sensing failed receptioncan include requesting each cell to repeat back an earlier sent command,and the NMS 210 not receiving a proper response to the request from allof the cells within the network. The lack of a response suggests to theNMS 210 that the commit command was not received by the devices(gateways and access nodes) that don't respond to the request by the NMS210.

The commit is a very disruptive process. That is, the commit changes theway that devices (gateways, access nodes) communicate within the network200. Therefore, it is desirable to have the commit command executed byall the devices as closely in time as possible. If all of the devicesare synchronized, the commit command and commit delay time can include aspecific time the commit is to be executed. If the devices are notsynchronized, the commit command can be associated with a variablecommit delay time, in which the commit delay time is varied dependingupon an estimated time in which the commit command will be received bythe various devices within the network 200. The generally idea is toadjust the commit delay time for each device so that the actual commitis executed by all of the devices at approximately the same time,thereby causing the least amount of disruption of the network 200.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing a method of managing a wireless meshnetwork. A first step 310 includes storing configuration parameters incells within the network. A second step 320 includes sending a commitcommand and commit delay time to the cells. A third step 330 includessensing failed reception of the commit command. A fourth step 340includes aborting the commit command if a failure is sensed.

The NMS stores the configuration parameters within stored parametersmemory of the access nodes and gateways of the cells. The configurationparameters are selected bases upon a current state of the network.

The commit command causes the configuration parameters of the storedparameter memory to be transferred to the present memory. However, acommit delay time is also sent by the NMS. The commit delay timeprovides a delay between when the commit command is received by thegateways and access nodes, and when the commit command is actuallyexecuted. The delay is provided to allow the NMS enough time todetermine whether all of the gateways and access nodes within cells ofthe network have received the new network configuration parameters andthe commit command. The new configuration parameters, the commit commandand the commit time delay can all be sent by the NMS simultaneously.

One way in which the NMS can determine whether there has been a failedreception of the commit command, includes the NMS requesting all of thecells (gateways and access nodes) to repeat back to the NMS the lastcommand received from the NMS. The request provides the NMS with enoughinformation to make a determination whether each of the cells receivedthe commit command. If a particular cell is not receiving commands fromthe NMS, the cell will not respond to the NMS request. The NMS candeduce that the commit command was not received.

If the NMS determines that one or more of the cells failed to receivethe commit command, the NMS aborts the commit command. This includessending an abort command to all of the cells within the network.

Events that can cause the NMS to update the network configurationparameters includes transmission channel updates, data encryptionupdates and routing control updates. This is not an inclusive list, andother network parameters can also be desirably updated.

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a Network Management System (NMS) 410.The NMS 410 is generally a computer program that is operable on a serverconnected to a network 420 the NMS 410 is controlling. The NMS 410provides management of the wireless mesh network 420. The NMS 410 canprovide network management, address management, monitoring, performancetracking, configuration management and security functions. As previouslydescribed, the NMS 410 controls the network configuration parameters.This includes controlling the sending of network configurationparameters, and the sending of the commit command and associated committime delay. Additionally, this can also include determining when newnetwork configuration parameters are desirable.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a method of an NMS managing a network.The method includes a first step 510 in which the NMS stores wirelessconfiguration parameters in cells (for example, gateways and accessnodes) within the wireless mesh network. A second step 520 includes theNMS sending a commit command and a commit delay time to the cells. Athird step 530 includes the NMS sensing failed reception of the commitcommand. A fourth step 540 includes the NMS aborting the commit commandif a failure is sensed.

Channels Selections Updates

FIG. 6 shows a wireless mesh network, an associated network manager(NMS) 615, and channel assignments within the wireless mesh network.Events that can prompt the NMS 615 to update the network configurationparameters include new channel selections within the network, new dataencryption or new routing control message.

An access node 610 receives beacons over multiple channels, allowing theaccess node 610 to make an uplink channel selection. The mesh networkincludes the NMS 615, a gateway 620, access nodes 610, 612, 614, 616,618, a client 650, and a network 605.

Three different channels (CH1, CH2, CH3) are shown in FIG. 6. Anembodiment includes the channels being different, allowing them to beselected to minimize interference between the channels. Anotherembodiment includes the channels being the same for simplicity. Achannel can be defined as a mode of transmission that allows differentchannels to be distinguishable. Depending upon conditions of thenetwork, different channel selections can be desirable. If the networksenses that a change in channels (of each of the links of the meshnetwork) is desirable, the NMS 615 updates the network configurationparameters to realize the change in channels.

An embodiment of the network includes the gateway 620 being anoriginator of beacons. The gateway 620 can be wire connected, orwirelessly connected to the network 605. The beacons are routing packetsthat carry information about routing paths. The beacons are transmittedfrom the gateway 620 for reception by the access nodes. Access nodesthat are able to receive the beacons from the gateway 620, can routedata to the gateway 620 if the access node selects the gateway 620 overother gateways that also transmit beacons (which can be over the samechannel (CH1), or different channels). Generally, the access nodesreceive routing beacons, select a routing path, modify the beacons, andretransmit the modified beacons for reception by other downstreamdevices (downstream devices can be other access nodes or clients). Anupstream path is a data path between a device (access node or client)and a gateway. A downstream path is in the opposite direction as anupstream path.

As shown in FIG. 6, the gateway 620 transmits beacons over a firstchannel (CH1). Access nodes 612, 614 both receive the beacons over thefirst channel (CH1). The access nodes 612, 614 are generally referred toas first layer access nodes, and are one hop from the gateway 620. Theaccess nodes 612, 614 modify the beacons to include their routinginformation and the hop count (hop count of one). The routinginformation provides a data path back to the gateway 620. The modifiedbeacons are retransmitted over a second channel (CH2). As previouslymentioned, the second channel (CH2) can be either the same, or differentthan the first channel (CH1) depending upon the desired implementationof the network.

Second layer access nodes 616, 618 receive the modified beacons over thesecond channel (CH2 ). The second layer access nodes 616, 618 have a hopcount of two. The second layer access nodes 616, 618 again modify thereceived beacons to include their routing information, and the new hopcount (hop count of two). The second layer access nodes 616, 618retransmit the modified beacons over a third channel (CH3). Aspreviously mentioned, the third channel (CH3) can be either the same, ordifferent than the first channel (CH1) and the second channel (CH2)depending upon the desired implementation of the network.

As shown in FIG. 6, access node 610 can receive beacons from the gateway620 over the first channel (CH1), from the first layer access nodes 612,614 over the second channel (CH2), and from the second layer accessnodes 616, 618 over the third channel (CH3). Generally, the access node610 performs a quality check on the received beacons, and selects theupstream data path connection based upon the quality check. Theselection determines the uplink channel selection of the access node610. That is, if the beacons received from the gateway 620 aredetermined to be the best quality, the first channel (CH1) is selectedas the uplink channel, if beacons from either of the first layer accessnodes 612, 614 are determined to be the best quality, the second channel(CH2) is selected as the uplink channel, and if the beacons receivedfrom the second layer access nodes 616, 618 are determined to be thebest quality, the third channel (CH3) is selected as the uplink channel.

An embodiment of the access node 610, includes the access node 610periodically switching its uplink channel to determine whether thequality of the beacons over different channels has changed. If a beaconover a different channel than the present becomes better than thepresent one, the access node can change its uplink channel selection. Ofcourse, the uplink channel re-selection will typically require a newdownlink channel selection as well. A similar embodiment includes theaccess node simultaneously receiving over all available channels duringnormal operation. That way, the access node 610 can determine if abetter channel is available while not interrupting on goingcommunication with downstream devices. Simultaneous reception can beimplemented with multiple radios or through the use of a widebandreceiver. If better channel selections are determined, the NMS 615 canupdate the network configuration parameters.

Another embodiment of the access node 610, includes the access node 610periodically re-transmitting the modified beacons over differentchannels. That way, a downstream device receiving beacons over adifferent channel than the channel the access node 610 is presentlytransmitting, may determine that the present channel of the access node610 is better than the channel the downstream device is presently usingas its uplink (potentially through a different upstream device). Ifbetter channel selections are determined, the NMS 615 can update thenetwork configuration parameters.

As shown, the channel selections can be made so that different channelsare assigned to consecutive links within each of the data paths of thewireless mesh network. A data path is generally defined as path thatdata travels between a device (access node or client) and a gateway. Thechannel selections follow predetermined sequences in order to minimizeinterference between the transmission links.

The channel selection between the access node 610 and the client 650 ismade by the access node 610. The selection is based upon thepredetermined sequence of channel links. Depending upon the uplinkchannel of the access node 610, the downlink channel will be, forexample, either the first channel (CH1) (if the uplink channel is thethird channel (CH3)), the second channel (CH2) (if the uplink channel isthe first channel (CH1)), or the third channel (CH3) (if the uplinkchannel is the second channel (CH2)).

As stated, the selected paths are determined by the quality of thebeacons received by an access node. The quality selection can be basedupon bit error rate (BER), packet error rate (PER), or signal to noiseration (SNR) of the received beacons. The quality selection can be basedupon a history of beacons received by the access nodes from any (or all)other access nodes and gateways. The history can be incorporated overmultiple time scales and be used to make a judgment about the qualityand reliability of a path advertised by a beacon. The quality selectionmay also be based on a variety of other factors including (wired)bandwidth available at the gateway and interference or congestion withinthe wireless network.

Beacons can be received from multiple gateways or access nodes. In oneembodiment, the beacons can be received by an access node on multiplechannels. The access node can periodically witch its receive channel inorder to receive the beacons over the multiple channels. In anotherembodiment, each access node periodically switches its beacon transmitchannel so that beacons can be sent on all available channels.

Data Encryption Selection Updates

A standard encryption is wired equivalent privacy (WEP) encryption. Theencryption can be periodically updated to provide a secure wireless meshnetwork. The NMS can include a timed updates (such as, an hour, day,week or month) in which the frequency of the update is dependent uponthe desired level of security of the network. The NMS updates thewireless network configuration parameters each time the encryption ofthe data is to be updated. Clearly, all of the devices must be updated(otherwise, the devices would not longer be able to communicate witheach other) and the updates for all of the devices desirably occurs atapproximately the same time to minimize the disruption caused by theupdate.

Routing Control Message Updates

Routing control messages, such as, the wireless routing domain (WRD)generally include their own coding. The WRD is required to preventunwanted associations with other networks. That is, neighboringunrelated networks should not include overlapping routing. The networksare desirably separate and secure from each other. Updating the WRDperiodically or repeatedly helps to prevent unwanted associations. Likethe encryption updating previously described, the NMS can include atimed WRD updates (such as, an hour, day, week or month) in which thefrequency of the update is dependent upon the desired level of securityof the network.

Although specific embodiments of the invention have been described andillustrated, the invention is not to be limited to the specific forms orarrangements of parts so described and illustrated. The invention islimited only by the appended claims.

1. A method of managing a network comprising: storing configurationparameters in cells within the network; sending a commit command and acommit delay time to the cells; sensing failed reception of the commitcommand, wherein sensing failed reception comprises: requesting eachcell to repeat back an earlier sent command; and not receiving a properresponse to the request from all of the cells within the network; andaborting the commit command if a failure is sensed.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein storing configuration parameters comprises storing theconfiguration parameters within stored memory of devices of the cells.3. The method of claim 1, wherein the commit command causes deviceswithin the cells to transfer configuration parameters from stored memoryto present memory.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein configurationparameters stored in present memory determine configurations of thedevices within the cells.
 5. The method of claim 3, wherein the deviceswithin the cells include gateways and access nodes.
 6. The method ofclaim 5, wherein the gateways and access node provide a client with adata path to an internet network.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein thecommit delay time is determined by an amount of time required tosuccessfully abort the commit command.
 8. The method of claim 1, whereinthe commit delay time is determined by an amount of time required tosuccessfully abort the commit command of all cells within the network.9. The method of claim 6, wherein the amount of time required tosuccessfully abort the commit command is dependent upon a size of thenetwork.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration parametersand the commit command are sent simultaneously in time.
 11. The methodof claim 1, wherein the commit delay time is variable for differentcells within the network, so that the commit command is executed by thedifferent cells at approximately the same time.
 12. The method of claim1, wherein new network configuration parameters are stored within cellsof the network, and corresponding commit command and commit time delaysent when transmission channel updates are determined to be desirable.13. The method of claim 1, wherein new network configuration parametersare stored within cells of the network, and corresponding commit commandand commit time delay sent when new data encryption is determined to bedesirable.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein new network configurationparameters are stored within cells of the network, and correspondingcommit command and commit time delay sent when new routing controlmessages are determined to be desirable.
 15. A method of NetworkManagement System (NMS) managing a wireless mesh network comprising: theNMS storing wireless configuration parameters in cells within thewireless mesh network; the NMS sending a commit command and a commitdelay time to the cells, the commit delay allowing the NMS to determinewhether any of the cells did not receive the commit command beforeexecution of the commit command; the NMS sensing failed reception of thecommit command; and the NMS aborting the commit command if a failure issensed.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein storing configurationparameters comprises storing the configuration parameters within storedmemory of devices of the cells.
 17. The method of claim 15, wherein theNMS and cells within the network are interconnected according to an SNMPprotocol.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein the wireless configurationparameters comprise at least one of wireless routing domain (WRD), WEP,and transmission channels.
 19. The method of claim 15, wherein thecommit command causes wireless devices within the cells to transferwireless configuration parameters from stored memory to present memory.20. The method of claim 19, wherein configuration parameters stored inpresent memory determine configurations of the devices within the cells.21. The method of claim 19, wherein the wireless devices within thecells include at least one of wireless gateways and wireless accessnodes.
 22. The method of claim 21, wherein the wireless gateways andwireless access node provide a wireless client with a data path to aninternet network.
 23. The method of claim 15, wherein sensing failedreception comprises: the NMS requesting each device within the cells torepeat back an earlier sent command; and not receiving a proper responseto the request from all of the cells within the network.
 24. The methodof claim 15, wherein the commit delay time is determined by an amount oftime required for the NMS to successfully abort the commit command ofall cells within the network.
 25. The method of claim 24, wherein theamount of time required to successfully abort the commit command isdependent upon a size of the network.
 26. The method of claim 15,wherein the wireless configuration parameters and the commit command aresent simultaneously in time.
 27. The method of claim 15, wherein thecommit delay time is variable for different cells within the network, sothat the commit command is executed by the different cells atapproximately the same time.
 28. The method of claim 15, wherein newnetwork configuration parameters are stored within cells of the network,and corresponding commit command and commit time delay sent whentransmission channel updates are determined to be desirable.
 29. Themethod of claim 15, wherein new network configuration parameters arestored within cells of the network, and corresponding commit command andcommit time delay sent when new data encryption is determined to bedesirable.
 30. The method of claim 15, wherein new network configurationparameters are stored within cells of the network, and correspondingcommit command and commit time delay sent when new routing controlmessages are determined to be desirable.
 31. A managed wireless networkcomprising: a network management system (NMS); a plurality of gatewaysin communication with the NMS; a plurality of access node in wirelesscommunication with the gateways, the access node providing clients withdata paths through the gateways to upstream networks; the NMS operableto: storing configuration parameters in gateways and access node withinthe wireless network; sending a commit command and a commit delay timeto the gateways and access nodes, the commit delay allowing the NMS todetermine whether any of the cells did not receive the commit commandbefore execution of the commit command; sensing failed reception of thecommit command; and aborting the commit command if a failure is sensed.32. A wireless network management system (NMS) comprising: means forstoring configuration parameters in gateways and access node within thea wireless network; means for sending a commit command and a commitdelay time to the gateways and access nodes, the commit delay allowingthe NMS to determine whether any of the cells did not receive the commitcommand before execution of the commit command; means for sensing failedreception of the commit command; and means for aborting the commitcommand if a failure is sensed.
 33. A network management productcomprising a computer program, the computer program operable to controla network, when executed, that computer program causing the network to:store configuration parameters in gateways and access node within the awireless network; send a commit command and a commit delay time to thegateways and access nodes, the commit delay allowing the NMS todetermine whether any of the cells did not receive the commit commandbefore execution of the commit command; sense failed reception of thecommit command; and abort the commit command if a failure is sensed.